2 Days in Tobago

As we had finished painting the primer on the hull we thought we deserved a short break and decided to visit neighbouring Tobago last week. Beyzano looked quite different with a bright yellow hull but the next couple of coats will be a more refined blue!

The 'Swedish' Boat

The fast ferry from Port of Spain left at 0630 and we were in Scarborough on Tobago by 1000 after a smooth crossing. The busy docks and container ships anchored in the Trinidadian bay serve this modern and relatively wealthy island. In contrast, Tobago is much smaller and has a lovely, relaxed ambience with chickens running around the towns and lots of colourful stalls in the markets.

Port of Spain, Trinidad

Leaving Port of Spain was interesting as there is a half sunken wreck just behind the ferry terminal, so it isn’t easy to manoeuvre out of the berth. It was also fun to go at a higher speed than usual!

Sunrise Over Port of Spain

We hired a car from Crew’s Inn for just 20 GBP a day, including collision waiver and filled the tank for 8 GBP, so it isn’t an expensive way to see another island. The roads were very quiet but you need to look out for a few major pot-holes where the steep sides under the roads have given way.

Fort George - Museum in Scarborough

The first day we visited the Fort George museum in town, which had several very well laid out rooms with thousands of years of island history on display. It was well worth a visit and was a beautiful building in its own right.

We then followed the coast road northeast, spending an hour at the waterfall to cool off. The scenery is spectacular, with countless sandy bays backed by steep, lush vegetation. The town of Charlotteville is the other port of entry for yachts, so we had a quick look for future reference. The anchorage was quite busy due to the customs office and the few shops in the town but there were only 2 boats anchored in Scarborough.

Charlotteville Anchorage

We checked into the Blue Waters Inn, at Speyside, an old estate. For 90 GBP a night, the room was very comfortable, with a luxurious shower, balcony overlooking the bay and 2 beds, which didn’t move! We were treated to a welcome rum punch before swimming out to a floating platform off the beach but there is also an infinity pool with bar, air-conditioned games room and a terrace bar by the beach. A small pier takes you to a covered deck with sun loungers, perfect for a sundowner.

Blue Waters Inn, Speyside

The next morning we sat on the terrace for a buffet breakfast, which was included. A selection of hot dishes were also available to order; maple pancakes – yum.

The hotel is an eco-centre and they have 6 different types of hummingbird happily taking advantage of nectar feeders in the grounds. Staff can arrange a glass bottomed boat trip, dive tuition and nature tours. It was a small, peaceful place and we would have been happy to spend a couple more days there.

Stunning Deserted Beaches

We took the north and west roads back to Scarborough, driving through the rain forest and visiting some picturesque bays, including Englishman’s Bay, en route. This was idyllic in the calm weather with an empty white sand beach and a colourful stall and restaurant. It is a famous anchorage but can be rolly in the wrong conditions.

Englishman's Bay - Another Deserted Anchorage

The ferry left at 1700 so we had time to explore the bustling town before boarding. Friday night is always party night in the islands and the bars were already quite lively, as was the ferry bar taking party goers to Port of Spain for the weekend. It was a whistle-stop tour but as it is unlikely we will sail there next season, it was good to see the island even if it had to be by ferry.

2 Responses to 2 Days in Tobago

Hi Rob & Rhian,
Still georgeous blue skies I see!! Beyzano looks secure all strapped down to those concrete blocks and looking nice and shiny. Tobago trip looked nice and some lovely photo’s, now looking more like holiday brochure pics, and those bays looked fabulous. Did you get to use those sunloungers in the second to last pic? A bit of boat maintenance, a little touring, a little lounging etc,etc, what a life eh!! On a technical note what primer have you used and what antifouling are you going to use?
Keep well.
regards,
Pete.

Cold and shivering in the UK now! We used Seahawk’s primer and will be applying a couple of coats of Seahawk Island 44 when we get back. The previous coat was International Micron Extra but there were still a lot of barnacles, so we decided to go for the Seahawk paint. They also do a bottle of tin additive to add to the final coat so we’ll see how that combats the little devils! We just lightly sanded the hull and washed it off before applying the primer.